It is the beginning of the end for one MoD site in the city as buildings at the Ensleigh site are demolished.

Contractors working for landowners Skanska have demolished abandoned MoD buildings on land off Granville Road.

Project manager James Hennessy, from the Wring Group, said the company had so far removed 1,300 tonnes of brick and rubble for recycling.

The 4.1 acre site is part of the former Ensleigh site at Lansdown.

Skanska bought the site in 2012 and originally intended to build 40 homes, however last September it announced its intention to sell the land.

Mr Hennessy said it was a six-week project.

“We started on January 27 demolishing the former MoD single storey brick buildings. We’ve demolished two thirds of the site and will complete the final third in the next couple of days. We plan to be on site for another two weeks clearing the rubble.”

The remaining 21 acres at Lansdown are being developed by Bloor Homes, Linden Homes and Bath architects Nash Partnership, in a joint project for landowner IM Properties. The site will be developed in three phases as civil servants move out and will eventually include up to 250 homes.

Work has also started to happen at the Foxhill MoD site where contractors have gone onto the site in preparation for demolition.

Curo is looking to build 700 homes, as well as community facilities, on the 47-acre site.

Plans for the third MoD site on Warminster Road are also moving forward with another exhibition due to be held next month on the proposals.

5 comments

What the developers define as "Affordable" is very likely to be unaffordable to the vast majority of us and certainly not for those who need to use buses. The Route 2 service is doomed, but the Hare and Hounds should sell plenty of expensive meals.

If there is going to be 'affordable' housing at Ensleigh, then I hope that the occupiers will be able also to afford the bus fares into town, assuming that the existing service even survives that long! Maybe they'll just spend all their time in the Hare & Hounds.......

BV - sadly the need for housing does mean changes to some views, presumably when your property was built, somebody lost their view. Much needed housing, and I just hope that there is sufficient 'affordable' in these developments, and that disabled needs are considered with level-access flats.
BV - Of course you could sit at your PC earning 82 dollars ah hour, soon have enough to buy a large mansion ;-) Mind you, 82 an hour, total 20,048, I make that 244 hours 29 minutes, bit more than a few.

I visited the exhibition for the planned development on the Ensleigh site. The plans showed that the houses to be built at the top of Charlcombe would be built far enough back that they wouldn't be seen from the valley below, much as the MOD site was. However the development at the start of Granville Road has many, many houses dominating the skyline, and three JCBs have been working away for weeks in the field below. I hope the building inspectors ensure that the skyline is preserved as much as possible, but sadly the temptation to give the houses fantastic views of my house in Fairfield Park will probably be too great.